Method of measuring a foot



March 10, 1925.

G. CLAUSING METHOD OF mmsuium A FOOT Filed Jan; 16, 1922 1 vi 1; I? I i;

, w ll Patented Mar. 1 0, 1925 UNITED STATES 1,529,167 PATENT OFFICE.

GEORGE CLAUSING, or PORTSMOUTH, OHIO, ASSIGNOR T0 w. J. BURKE, or PORTS;

MOUTH, OHIO.

METHOD OF MEASURING A FOOT.

Application filed January 16,1922. Serial No. 529,408.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, GEORGE CLAUSING, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of the city of Portsmouth, in the county of Scioto and State of Ohio, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Methods of Measuring a Foot, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to a method of measuring feet in the fitting of shoes.

It is customary at the present time in fitting shoes to merely measure the length of the foot from heel to toe. All feet, however, are not uniform as to the length of the foot from ball to heel, with the result that shoes fitted under present methods, while they may be the proper length from heel to toe, they are not the correct length from heel to ball. This results in a bending of the shoe at the wrong place instead of at the ball, causing pressure on the ball of the foot and other complications.

It is an object of this invention to pro vide amethod of and apparatus for fitting shoes whereby not only may the foot be properly fitted so far as the length of the shoe from heel to toe is concerned, but so far as the length from heel to ball of the foot is concerned also.

In order that my invention may be realized I provide a measuring device adapted to receive a foot to be fitted, the base of. this device being graduated both as to the length of the foot from heel to toe and from heel to ball. From these graduations with the aid of a pair of slides or stops, one of which cooperates with the toe of the foot and the other with the ball. the correct size of shoe may be readily determined.

The accompanying drawing shows an embodiment of my invention in plan.

This device in the form illustrated comprises a fiat base 1 to one end of which is rigidly secured aheel sto 2. This heel stop is merely a strip of rigid material such as Wood or metal extending vertically from one end of the base. The base is provided with rails 3 at each side thereof on which are mounted a pair of ball indicators 4 and 5 and a toe indicator 6 adapted to slide on the rails.

Each ball indicator projects transversely of the base, its front end designated 7 being adapted to register with numbered ball graduations 8 with which the base of my device is provided.

The toe indicator 6 is likewise adapted to be moved into register with aseries of tee graduations 9 on the base 1. s

The ball graduations 8 are shown as numbered from 1 to 15 inclusive and these graduations correspond to standard last lengths. That is to say, the distance from the heel stop 2'to the graduation marked 4 of the ball graduations is the length from heel to ball of a standard 4 last.

The toe graduations correspond to standard last lengths from heel to toe. That is, the distance of the graduation marked 3 from the heel stop is equal to the length of a standard 3 last from toe to heel. The thickness of the toe indicator 6 is two and one-half last sizes, this being the allowance usually made between the length of a foot and a shoe for that foot.

In employing my device the foot to be fitted is placed on the base 1 with the heel against the heel stop 2 as indicated in broken lines on the drawing. The ball indicator 4 is then moved along the guide 3 until the portion 7 thereof barely engages the ball of the foot being measured. The toe indicator 6 is then moved up against the toe of the foot. If now the ball indicator 4 registers with graduation 7 of the ball graduations and the toe indicator 6 registers with the graduation 7 the proper shoe for this foot is size 7, the reading being taken from the far side of the toe indicator 6. If, however, the ball indicator should be located at 5 for example, with the toe indicator resting at 6, the correct size of shoe is determined by subtracting from the toe measurement one-half size, the toe indicator then being moved back a corresponding distance, that is to say, to five and one-half. The reading for the shoe is then taken from the far side of the toe indicator as before, the correct size in this distance being 5%. If, however, the

ball indicator should register at 7 with the toe indicator at 6, the reading for the shoe is then taken from the ball indicator the proper shoe for this foot is size seven.

It will be understood, of course, that when the left foot is being measured the ball indicator 5 is employed in conjunction with the toe indicator.

It will be seen from the foregoing that I have provided a method of and apparatus 01 f'fitting" shoes wherein the correct foot from ball to heel whereby the bend,

of the shoe will fall in the ri ht p1ace with respect to the foot. 1 I

It will be seen also that in determining the size of shoe if the' reading at the" toe indicator is a hig'her number thanthat of the ball indicator one-half the difiere nce in size between the'twdfread'ings' is subtracted from the reading at the toe indicator and the latter moved abeordingly; )n

the other hand, should thelreading at the toe indicatorfbe lower than that atrthe ball then the reading should be taken The method of measuring feet, which methiod' 'consistsin measuring a foot from bali't'o heelan'd from'to'etdheel and when the reading of the toe-to-heel units of measurement exceeds the" reading "of the JoalLto-heel units of measurement subtracting one-half the difference between the two measure iiieht s'from the toe-to-heel measurement, and when'the reading of the ball-toheel units of measurement exceeds the reading of the toe-to-heel units fmeasurement adding one-half the diiferencefhetween the two m'easuren e 'nts to jthe "itoe-to-h'eel measurement, said measurements being in lengths of standard la ts;

This specification sign'ed this 11 day of anuary 11922.

sEQe e CPAUSING- 

